


A Twist in Perceptions

by keelywolfe



Category: Journey into Mystery, Thor (Comics)
Genre: Dubious Consent, Implied Incest, Implied Underage, M/M, Sex Magic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-08-02
Updated: 2012-08-02
Packaged: 2017-11-11 06:47:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,994
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/475721
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/keelywolfe/pseuds/keelywolfe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Later, Thor would blame himself. He was no magician, no sorcerer but still, he blamed himself because there was no one else to blame.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Twist in Perceptions

**Author's Note:**

> If you haven't been reading the Thor comics, and really, you should, then you need to know in the comics, Loki was reborn as a slightly less...er...evil version of himself. Ikol, his magpie familiar, is actually a manifestation of the other Loki's memories, acting as something of a guide for our younger version. I'm setting this story a few years after Loki's rebirth.

* * *

Later, Thor blamed himself. 

Others would protest that the very idea he was at fault was ridiculous. You are a hero, they would cry. Savior and protector of our people untold times. 

You are no magician, no sorcerer, they would argue, and so he was not to know when a spell had settled over him, sank its teeth into his skin and leaving behind a malevolent compulsion. 

They would argue it was not his fault, yet Thor knew better. 

It was his fault because there was no other to blame. 

* * *

It was a day like many others, one that Thor had spent on Midgard with the Avengers. A poorly conceived plot by some as yet unnamed villain, assaulting the new city of York with an army of robots and Thor had helped his fellow warriors crush the invading force with the sort of grim satisfaction that came with mindless violence against non-sentient beings. 

He would remember it later as a quick wash over him, like being struck by an oceanic wave that fell against him and spattered back down to lap at his ankles. A quick splash of magic, nothing more, and then there was no time for wonderment, nor even fury at being struck from behind by some cowardly foe. He was on the street with his shieldbrothers beside him and there were robots to fight and Thor forgot that tiny moment of oddness as metal crunched beneath the combined force of his fists and Mjölnir. 

Only later, on his return to floating Asgardia, did he remember and memory came with a compulsion; an itch, at the back of his mind. 

Around him, Asgardia was enjoying the evening meal, Fandral and Hogun by Thor's side and Volstagg close by, though not too close for only a fool or a drunkard would come between Volstagg and a meal. 

An itch, a memory of magic wielded against him and Thor had no urge to eat nor drink.

"Where is my brother?" he asked, abruptly, casting a look around the table and there was no sign of him at all. 

"Loki?" Volstagg wiped his face on the back of the hand not currently holding a half-gnawed turkey leg. "He rarely attends the evening meal, you know this."

He did know this. Loki, even a young Loki, was still little loved and more often than not preferred to take his meals elsewhere. The knowledge didn't quiet that niggling itch. It had been several years since his brother's rebirth, by Midgardian reckoning, and still his brother was outcast.

Thor stood and left the table without another word, ignoring the startled questions of his friends, and went in search of Loki. The library was his first choice, silent and echoing with emptiness that Loki was not there to fill. Nor was he in his rooms and Thor ignored the low growl and mutterings from the dog that was his namesake, still little more than a puppy by the lifespan of a hellhound. Every place that Thor searched yielded nothing and the restlessness within him was growing, even as Thor considered one last place that Loki was known to hide himself from the prying, distrustful eyes of Asgardians.

And it was there Thor discovered him. There, in his own sitting room, was his brother, ignoring the comfort of various sofas and chairs to sprawl in front of the blazing fireplace with some dusty tome open in front of him. Loki had yet to notice him, only turned another page in his book while Thor studied him, the itch in the back of his mind spreading to his hands which suddenly had the urge to touch. 

For all that he was a Prince of Asgard, Loki often bore himself with a distressing casualness, something Thor swore was an aftereffect caused by his rebirth on Midgard. He was dressed in only a thin tunic and leggings, his feet bare, boots toed off and wilted next to the fire.

In this light, with that irritating burn crawling over him, Thor couldn't help but notice Loki's hair was much longer than Thor recalled him allowing it for some time before, pulled back messily at the back of his head, and a few strands had fallen loose around his face.   

As Thor watched, Loki turned another page, absently reaching up and catching a lock of hair to twirl it around his finger and Thor took in the lines of his face. This Loki did not look precisely the same as his predecessor, though why that should be Thor was uncertain.  Memory was an imperfect thing and yet Thor knew. Reborn, Loki's face was rounder, his nose less sharp. Everything about him seemed somehow…softer, in an inexpressible way. 

Thor had yet to make a sound but something alerted Loki to his presence. He glanced up, a flicker of green eyes and where once Loki's looks would have been sly, cold, this Loki, this little brother's eyes lit from within, showing only pleasure at seeing Thor.

"I see you've returned from your smiting more or less intact," Loki said, pushing up to his knees with a lazy stretch. The book fell carelessly closed and Loki paid it no mind, his attention and his smiles only for Thor. That niggling itch burned brighter, something, something--

Thor struggled to push it aside, moved to sit next to his brother and decided it must be the warmth of the fire drawing sweat to his face. "Indeed, a battle well fought this day. And you? What are you studying?"

Loki glanced back at his book and waved a dismissive hand at it. "Nothing that will interest you," he said, and his eyes were bright, eager, "Tell me about your adventures today with the Avengers. Did you make a terrible mess of the villain's little minions?"

 "Yes," Thor said and he heard the hoarseness in his voice, tasted his own sweat damp on his upper lip. "Yes, I—" He trailed off and watched as Loki's brow creased, some of his enthusiasm dimming into concern.

"Thor?"

It seemed only reasonable to reach out to Loki, lifting him and Loki made a sound of surprise, flailing as Thor pulled him into his lap and held him there with an arm around his slim waist. The itch had been consumed by burning and Loki was a firm weight in his arms, his struggles seemed borne more of surprise than true protest. 

"What are you _doing_?!"

Thor did not answer in words, reaching up with his free hand to loosen his hair, letting the long strands spill free down his back. He combed his fingers through it, thick and oddly cool, fascinated as it clung to his fingertips. Soft, so soft, a sharp contrast to the way Loki was perched stiffly in his lap, the line of his spine visible beneath his thin tunic. Thor drew two fingers downward, tracing each bump as Loki drew in a harsh breath. 

"Tell me more about the battle today," Loki said, tersely. He was still as a stone, unyielding beneath Thor's touch. 

Thor sighed, inhaled the warmth of his scent, soot, ink, the desiccated aroma of old books. The dark spill of his hair was an enticement and Thor tightened his arm around Loki's waist as he buried his face into the silken strands of it, cold against the heat of his face, and here he could smell Loki, drew the scent of him deep into his lungs.

If anything, Loki grew even more unyielding, a small sound escaping him before he said with brutal tartness, "Brother, while all I know of you with my previous incarnation is but whispered rumor and innuendo, I feel the need to remind you that in this lifetime, we are not nor have we ever been lovers."

"You smell intoxicating."

Silence greeted him and then, "I…have no idea what to say to that."

A Loki without words; surely a celebration was in order and if the burning in Thor's belly hadn't sunk lower, spreading to his groin, Thor might have said as much. As it was, he took a moment to draw aside that fine hair, black as the wing of the magpie that chose to accompany his brother, to bare the delicate, pale curve of Loki's ear. He gasped as Thor tasted it, pressed his teeth gently to the soft lobe.

"Was…was there magic today, on Midgard," Loki persisted, irritatingly, his voice catching as Thor worried that tender flesh, soothing any tiny hurt with his tongue.  "Was there a spell or—wait!"

Loki's belly was taut beneath his fingertips as Thor slid his hand down the front of his leggings and hands grabbed at him, struggling to still him. Thor growled, the burning within him flaring to crimson in his vision, and he tore away from the hold, shoved his brother to the floor and loomed over him as Loki stared up at him with wide, green eyes.

"I'm not saying no, _I'm not saying no_ ," Loki said loudly and some of the red faded from behind Thor's eyes. Loki wet his lips, a pink flicker of tongue and Thor followed it with his eyes, and oh, it was tempting to follow it with his own mouth. He leaned in to do just that, only Loki spoke again. Distractions. "Only-- would you not talk to me? Can you not answer my questions before you…?"

Loki trailed off, his lashes dipping in a slow blink and it was coquettishly flirtatious. Enticingly so.

"Loki," Thor whispered hoarsely.

"Can you not do this for me, with your own brother for his first time?" Loki coaxed and those words sent that inner heat spiraling, first times, yes, again, first times with his brother, with Loki. "Tell me, do you remember magic today?"

"Yes," Thor said, distractedly. He was watching Loki's mouth form words, the flex and shift of his thin lips, lips that begged to be kissed and nibbled to swollen pinkness. 

"A spell?" Loki persisted. "Was there light? Did you feel something?"

"Yes, yes," Thor mumbled and he leaned in, hissing in frustration as Loki tipped his head away. 

"Please," Loki said, firmly, "Please, a moment." And to Thor's dismay, his flirtatiousness melted away, left behind only contemplation. A lie, then, but Thor did as his brother asked, though that burn was like a growing inferno within him. 

Loki's eyes were distant, resting thoughtfully on the ceiling and the even line of his teeth were digging into his lower lip. "A spell," he murmured, "And what am I to do without much magic of my own—"

"Loki," Thor heard the desperation in his own voice dimly, the pleading. 

Loki closed his eyes, the shadow of his lashes dark across the paleness of his cheeks. "Very well, then."

The words had barely escaped before Thor covered Loki's mouth with his own, tasting the sweetness of his breath as Loki gasped. He tipped his head up almost clumsily, his lips still closed and Thor slid his tongue over the seam of them, coaxing for entrance. Hesitantly, Loki allowed it and Thor dipped his tongue into the dark sweetness of his mouth, felt his brother quiver beneath him. 

Loki's acquiesce eased some of his ardor, cooled his senses and Thor could take a moment to appreciate the softness of Loki's mouth, the cautiousness of his own tongue as he slid it wetly against Thor's. First kisses, Thor thought, with the flames rising within him, covering him with delicious warmth. 

Loki tore his mouth away with a gasp as Thor curled his hand beneath him, pulling his hips up into his lap. For all that this Loki was slimmer than his previous incarnation, Thor still fit easily between his legs, bending his knees to Thor's waist as Thor pulled him in. 

"Brother," Loki gasped, biting his lip. He turned his face away, eyes closed tightly as Thor pressed open-mouth kisses to his jaw, biting the tender line of it. 

"Easy," Thor soothed, his mouth gentle on his smooth cheek. Loki had ever been beardless, that much had not changed. He tasted a path back to Loki's ear, scraping the soft lobe with his teeth as he murmured into it, "Do not be frightened."

"Not—not frightened," Loki stuttered and he squirmed as Thor slid his hands down Loki's lean thighs, smoothing over his leggings. It dragged his bottom firmly against Thor's hardening cock and he exhaled, slowly, reaching for control. It had been so long since he'd touched his brother this way, a terribly long time even by Asgardian standards and to have him here now, slim and lovely and once-again virginal. 

"No?" Thor asked, softly, "No, you would not fear the unknown."

"I do not fear you," Loki corrected, tipping his head to the side with eager instinctiveness. Always so eager to learn, his little brother, impatient in his desire to unravel mysteries, and Thor indulged him, rubbing his bearded face into the juncture of Loki's shoulder and neck until he laughed, squirming ticklishly. Deliciously. 

"Do not be so," Thor groaned, catching Loki's slim hips and stilling him. "Or I shall spend before we begin."

Impish laughter greeted that and Loki strained against his grip, managing only the tiniest of movements. "We are already begun, my brother. Would you have me like this, then, on the hard floor? I would let you," he added, softer, a tremulous note to his voice. "I think I might enjoy it, having you so."

Thor shuddered, to hear that sly voice saying such things. "No," Thor said, firmly, to both Loki and the growing pressure of his shaft within his breeches. "I would offer my brother better than that."

So saying, he scooped his little brother into his arms and strode determinedly to the bedchamber with his laughing, wriggling bundle, though he nearly faltered as Loki squirmed up to lick at his ear, teasing him with his clever, liar's tongue. There was a truth in it now, there was _knowledge_ and Thor stopped abruptly, whirling to pin the lithe body in his arms firmly to the wall as he frowned into Loki's startled eyes.

"Where have you learned such things," Thor demanded, glowering, as Loki stared up at him with widened eyes, brilliant, shocked emerald greeting his hard gaze, "Who else have you lain with?"

"No…no one," Loki sputtered and Thor's eyes dropped to his mouth, wondering at what tales it might be spinning now. "I…who would have me?"

"Who, indeed," Thor rumbled. Who indeed would Loki be willing to lie with…ah. "Or perhaps I should ask, who might have _taken_ you?"

Loki's mouth firmed, "None. I am as you see me, only barely touched and only by you."

They glared at each other, Loki held tight to the wall by Thor's body and neither willing to yield. Thor scowled at his little brother, considering. It was true he had been bullied upon his return; Asgardians were not above their petty flaws and had indulged their hatred of past sins on the body of a child. He had thought it passed, Loki sullenly accepted, and yet, he _had_ grown lovely over the past years, allowing his hair to grow long, a silken curtain surrounded the pale oval of his face, his mouth, soft and pink as a young girl's, had become a temptation. One that Thor was finding he had little will to resist. 

He saw Loki's eyes widen as he lowered his head, pressed his mouth against those lush, sweet lips again. Tasted them, the warmth, the uncertainty…ah, the innocence. Much soothed, Thor let the tip of his tongue skirt over the seam, dipping inside as Loki parted them warily. His tongue was lax, unmoving as Thor explored the velvet darkness of Loki's mouth, tasting where so many lies had been spun. 

A soft huff of breath came through Loki's nose, gusting between them, and Thor chuckled into the kiss as Loki whined, softly, his tongue finally coming to life and dancing uncertainly with Thor's. 

"Ah, Loki," Thor murmured, tangling one hand into his brother's soft hair and urging his head back so that he could taste the line of his throat, nibble at the abruptness of his collarbone. 

"Brother," Loki gasped, a thin sound, as Thor nudged a knee between his legs, sliding up to press against the firming line of his cock. The bed was not so far away, the blankets and furs offering up their comforts and yet, Thor only lifted his brother's slight weight higher, tugging aside cloth and lacings impatiently. Once, he would have needed no such effort, they would have melted away like snow beneath the coming light of spring, his brother weaving magic thoughtlessly until his naked skin greeted Thor's touch. This Loki, this brother had no such skills, not as of yet, and his cries were choked and eager as Thor's mouth pressed wetly low on his belly. His leggings sagged downward, their lacings pulled loose, and Thor followed, finding the bare, slim cock eager beneath. 

Hands were abruptly in Thor's hair, pulling frantically and he had not the will to shake them away. Not when he could lower his head and taste his brother afresh, slide his tongue through the slick, bitter fluid at the head, teasing beneath the foreskin to hear Loki groan. 

Always, Loki had been tender there, Thor recalled, sensitive and he took Loki in fully, sucking his slender prick until he arched his back against the hard, stone wall, his hands clutching great hanks of Thor's hair. "Oh, oh, brother," he whimpered, "Oh, your mouth, oh."

Thor let Loki slide free, ignored his protesting cry. "Yes?" he whispered harshly. "Yes, what of it?" and then, impatient when all Loki did was wiggle in his grasp, drawing in great, heaving gasps of air, "Speak, boy, I would hear your voice!"

"Please!" Loki burst out. His cock was inches from Thor's lips, reddened and slick with his spit.  "Please, you must…Thor!"

Ah, to hear his name spoken so. He lowered his head again instantly, taking his brother back within until he felt the lewd press of the head against the back of his throat. He swallowed against it, held his tongue tight beneath it and felt the tremor of Loki's cry, his whimpering babble, "Yes, oh, yes, yes, so hot! Your tongue, Thor, it feels so…yes, I…I am…"

His cries went wordless, hips straining against Thor's grip as he came with a great, shivering cry, spurting wetly over Thor's tongue and though it was never and would never be as clever as his brother's, he heard no protest as Loki spent himself. 

He caught Loki up as he sagged, carrying his limp body to the bed and settling him on the furs. Loki offered no resistance as Thor quickly stripped away his breeches, tossing clothing unheeded aside until Loki was bare, his slim body still boyish yet, his sated prick soft against the velvet sac of his balls. 

Slowly, Thor stripped away his own clothes, pausing only to nuzzle between Loki's legs, sucking one ball and then the other in his mouth, until Loki half-curled over him, hands scrabbling at Thor's shoulders in unspoken desperation. 

"Easy, little brother," Thor soothed, stroking his silken thighs before reaching for his belt. He stripped away his breeches quickly, his unsated cock heavy between his legs. Loki's drooping eyes went wide, his mouth dropping open as he stared unabashedly. Thor curled a hand around it, giving himself a quick stroke. "Easy," he repeated, "If you'd not—"

"Do not finish that—" Loki said firmly and Thor felt a hot throb as he rolled to lie on his belly, raising his hips. He looked over his shoulder at Thor and if there was any fear in him, Thor could not see it. "Have me. I want you to."

Thor took a long breath, exhaled it shakily as he reached to cup those slim hips, digging his thumbs into the rounded cheeks to part them. A tiny -- so tiny!—pink pucker greeted him, skin stretching as he parted them further and he had no will to resist the urge to lick at this, rubbing his bearded face against the tender skin as Loki gave a near shriek, nearly wresting himself from Thor's hands. 

He looped an arm beneath him, reeling Loki back in as he licked that little hole, pressing his tongue against it, wetting it, before wriggling inside. Loki sobbed beneath him, quivering, and beneath his arm Thor could feel him hardening again. 

"There, there, little brother," Thor crooned, slicking his tongue up the cleft, knowing full well the feel of a beard on such delicate skin. He moved up to his knees as Loki whimpered, shivering, and reached for the bottle resting on his bedside table. Quickly, he poured a measure of oil into his hand, slicking himself and the feel of his own hand made Thor groan. He resisted, wanting to be inside his brother when he peaked and the fiery burn within him was no longer to be resisted. 

"Loki?" Thor whispered, leaning forward and letting the wet head of his prick push lightly against his opening. His brother stilled, burying his face into his arms even as he arched his hips up invitingly. "Little brother, little love, I am sorry."

"Sorry—" Loki began, his voice breaking off in a near scream as Thor caught his hips and pressed forward. Ah, so tight, virginal resistance against him and Thor was forced to hold tightly as Loki tried to cringe away from him, struggling against Thor's grip until he was afraid of bruising him. 

"Easy," he whispered, his own voice rough and grating. Loki was excruciatingly tight around him, clenching as he fought against him, his shoulders shaking. The sound made his heart clench and Thor slid his arms him, holding him even as he struggled to remain still. "Easy, my sweet little brother, my Loki, I have you."

"It hurts," Loki gasped out, his breath thin and reedy, whistling in gulps, and Thor could see shining wetness on his reddened cheek. "It hurts, Thor, ah, hurts—"

"I know, sweeting, my precious love, I know—"

"Do not say such things!" Loki ground out and Thor bit back a groan as his brother clenched tight, gripping his cock with such lovely, slick heat.

"No?" Thor murmured. He pressed tender kisses against Loki's shoulder, biting softly at the back of his neck as the boy took deep, slow breaths, the tight clench of his ass loosening infinitesimally. 

"No," Loki agreed shakily, "Virgin I may be, but I am no maid to cozen with pretty words lest she cringe at losing her maidenhead."

"You are pretty as a maiden," Thor teased and he punctuated it with a slow, gentle press of his hips, heard Loki choke on his reply. The slide was easier now, the brutal tightness ebbing and Thor rocked into his brother with slow, careful thrusts, easing in and drawing slowly out, pressing in a bit deeper, no more than halfway inside that sweet, tight heat.

"Oh, brother," Thor groaned. For all his strength, he could resist no longer. He ached to be deep within, burned to _take_. "I must have more of you." And pushed hard, forcing Loki to take more of his thick length.

"Ah!" Loki yelped, "Ah, wait, you—"

"Please," Thor whispered, leaning his weight into it, sliding in deeper still. "Please, my little brother, littlest brother, I need you—"

"Ah, deep!" Loki moaned. "Ah, brother, you—so much of you!"

"And you." Thor settled against Loki's smooth backside with a sigh. He held Loki tight to his chest, the clasp of his body near to the point of pain. Felt his quivering gasps as he struggled for breath, tried to force his untried body to accept this invasion. "Lovely child," Thor murmured into the damp mass of his hair. He could taste his brother's sweat, the clean salt-sharp flavor tantalizing. 

"I'm not," Loki broke off, the knife-blade sharpness to his voice catching before he managed, weaker, "Not a child." As though to prove it, Loki shifted in his arms, rocking his backside against his brother's hips and forced Thor to once again grab his hips with a curse, holding Loki still lest he spill into that virgin tightness. 

"Loki," Thor whispered and kissed his brow. "You have never been a child."

He could wait no longer, lifting Loki up from his lap, pulling slightly free, before dropping him back down, meeting him with a hard upward thrust. He felt as much as heard Loki squeal, felt him struggle against Thor's sure grip but there was no stopping now. Not with the feel of Loki clenching around him, drawing him in, not with Loki's cries echoing in his ears. He held his brother close and took him, fucked his way deep into his slender body. 

"Brother," Thor growled out, and his body was ablaze now with the need of it. He pushed Loki down to the bedclothes with a firm hand between his shoulders and snaked the other beneath him, hauling him up on his knees when he would have sagged downward. "Uh!" Thor grunted, shoving hard into Loki's slim body. "Uh! Uh, little brother, my Loki, my…uh!"

He held him there, pinned to the bedclothes and fucked his brother hard, taking him, driving into his virgin body as Loki whimpered and quivered beneath him. Gentleness was forgotten, lost to his own driving lust and it was dim, useless hope that he wasn't hurting the boy. Slitting his eyes open, he could see two pale hands clenched into the bedclothes, bracing himself as Thor shoved in harder still, punishing thrusts though perhaps…who was he punishing?

"Loki," Thor moaned, and he tried to slow, tried to gentle his movements and was shocked at a hard slap against his arm, one arm flailing back at him. 

"Do not stop now!" Loki snarled, his one visible green eye blazing from the side of his face not buried in the bedclothes. "Take me, damn you!"

And Thor, bowing his head, did as his brother asked. Held his slight hips and took, fucking him hard, harder, the wet slap of their meeting flesh loud and obscene over the crackle of the hearth. 

He felt it when Loki came, the loosened hole around his cock spasming tight again, felt it even as Loki tipped his head back in a loud cry, echoing through the room only to wither beneath Thor's shout as he drove in hard a final time, spilling the hot rush his seed into his brother, spurting into the still-clenching tightness of his ass. 

Thor nearly collapsed, catching his weight only just on his elbows as his strength left him. Beneath him, Loki was limp, sprawled out on the furs and shining with sweat, a mixture of his own and Thor's gleaming on the paleness of his skin. With an effort, Thor pressed his face into the little hollow between his shoulder blades, licked at the sweat pooling there. 

A faint sound escaped Loki, the ghost of laughter. He lifted his head, a trail of spittle connecting his mouth to the sheets, "You have ruined me," he announced and then flopped back to the bedclothes. 

"Ruined you?" Thor managed a husky chuckle. "Perhaps so. A just punishment as I believe our ruination was mutual." With a weary grunt, Thor pushed up to his knees, finally pulling free of Loki who was unable to completely muffle his pained cry. 

Thor moved to lie beside his brother before unabashedly sliding a finger between the soft cheeks, gently probing the hot, abused little hole. Loki squirmed, muttering protests that Thor ignored until he was satisfied he was uninjured and only Thor's seed gleamed wet between his legs. He knew Loki and he knew his brother would rather walk in a hobbled crawl than admit to hurts and while he'd near brutalized the boy in his lust; Thor would have not borne leaving him to nurse his injuries alone. 

"I was rougher than I intended, I think," Thor said, softly, stroking a hand down the smooth line of Loki's back, over the still-tempting curve of his bare hip.

"I should think so!" Loki mumbled. "I do not protest now but my backside may offer complaint on the morrow."

Thor could only hum an agreement, nuzzled aside silken strands to press a soft kiss to Loki's ear. Sleep was dragging him downward and Thor's will to resist had long since been abandoned. He looped an arm around Loki and pulled him in, burying his face into the sweat-damp coolness of his hair, and drifted. 

* * *

It was the cold brightness of daybreak that woke him the next morning, his head aching like the aftermath of a long night drinking and Thor murmured bleary curses, rolling away from the windows. And into an unfamiliar body that groaned protests of its own. 

Thor lifted his head, scrubbing sleepiness away as he peered next to him. And found his brother, the blankets kicked down to his ankles, utterly bare to the world and oblivious to the morning chill. But then, Loki would be. 

Oh, by the Nine. Thor swallowed away the sleep-dryness in his throat and took in the sight of his brother with growing horror. Naked, yes, winter-pale against the bed linens and yet, there were dark shadows on his hips the same shade as his hair, shaped to Thor's fingers and hands. Another bruise below his ear, sucked into the tender skin and his lips were bitten and swollen pink. Ravished, he was, it was the only word that suited.

With his own guilty hand, Thor reached down and drew the tangled sheet free, draped it over his brother and hid the marks of his brutality from view. Only to startle as a sleepy voice asked him, "Have you returned to yourself, then?"

There was a slim gleam of emerald from beneath Loki's lashes, watching him, and Thor exhaled slowly, remembering--

"You knew," Thor stated.

"That you were somehow ensorcelled?" Loki rolled to his back, stretching with a groan. "Of course I knew. Precarious as your emotions can be, you aren't one for ravishing me in the night."

"But you did not—" No, it sounded like he was accusing Loki of causing his own rape. "I do not blame you," Thor said, slowly, choosing his words with care. "Only, you did not…" He trailed away again. Loki had offered little protest and his memories were faintly blurred but Thor recalled him being eager.

Loki shrugged one bare shoulder.  "It seemed best to simply go along with it. You did not," he coughed slightly, "Appreciate my attempts at halting you."

No, he had not. Thor closed his eyes, remembering. "Child, I cannot beg your forgiveness."

That sat his brother up quick enough. "Do not," Loki said sharply. "I will not take apologies for crimes not committed. This was hardly your fault. And loathe as you are to admit it, I am no longer a child," his mouth twisted wryly. "I was virgin not out of lack of interest but from lack of options."

_You have never been a child._ Thor winced slightly. Loki sat before him, the bed linens fallen carelessly around his hips, marked and bruised and—for the first time since his brother's rebirth, Thor was afraid to touch him, afraid of his welcome. He steeled himself against it, reached out to lightly touch Loki's mouth, fine soft lips faintly swollen and he sighed.

"Thor, I am fine."

"Except for having your virginity stolen from you," Thor said, quietly. 

The lips beneath his fingertips twisted into a thin smirk, "My virginity was hardly the treasure you seem to think."

But that wasn't it, Thor realized. Not his virginity, it was his loss of innocence that Thor regretted. But perhaps that was a treasure only he prized as well.  "You forgive me too easily."

His laughter was bright this time, "One might say the same of you!" Finally, Loki drew away from him and Thor averted his eyes as his brother sought out his clothing. "You should sleep longer," Loki told him, "I'd like to do a little researching, make sure this spell isn't going to be an enduring problem."

Wise, even as young as he was, and Thor nodded, helplessly, watching as Loki stepped nimbly into his boots and was out the door, and if his gait was somewhat stiff, well, no other in Asgard would be watching for it. 

Tired as he still was, sleep was reluctant to come, not with memory so fresh behind his eyes. A spell, he and Loki had both been caught in something, by someone, and when Thor discovered who had done it, there would be revenge, of that there was no question.

And yet…Thor was to blame and worse, oh, so much worse, was his lack of any real regret. The lack of excuse for the warmth of arousal low in his belly when he looked at the faint swollenness of Loki's mouth, the milk-pale line of his back smeared with bruises the shape of Thor's hands. 

Uneasily, Thor drew the blankets back up and fell into restless sleep filled with fluttering black wings and green eyes. 

* * *

There was no bed in Loki's chambers, only a sleeping mat and he reclined on it with a wince, shifting to find a comfortable position with limited success. Every part of him seemed to ache with soreness. Even his scalp was tender; who might have guessed that Thor would be taken with petting him like some sort of lost mongrel?

There was a flutter of wings next to him and Loki opened one eye to find Ikol perched beside him on the back of a chair, his head tilted with birdish curiosity. "And how was it?"

"As though you didn't observe?" Loki grimaced, pressing a hand against the small of his back. "It was somewhat more painful than I was led to believe. Although," Loki allowed himself a smirk. "I can see a certain appeal in even that."

Ikol made a disapproving thocking sound. "Thor was always a brute about such matters."

Loki glared at the insult but offered no protest; the ache in his backside was too much proof of the truth in that.

"And what did you gain from this?" Ikol persisted. "I might have enjoyed watching Thor bask in his own guilt over an imagined rape but you—"

"He didn't rape me, imagined or otherwise! He just couldn’t see past me as a child," Loki sighed, wincing again as he rolled over. "He doesn't want to. As a child, I am safe. Trickster, perhaps, mischievous. As an adult…" Loki trailed away. "I don't need to tell you what he sees in me as an adult. Anyway, charming as his perception is, I am not a child any longer. Sometimes you need to force the issue."

Ikol cocked his head, the magpie regarding him with a beady, black eye. "And you believed the best way to gain his trust as an adult was a spell to seduce him?"

"Ikol," Loki clicked his tongue in dismay. "Don't be ridiculous. The day Thor trusts me is the day I'll know all of Asgard has forgiven me for sins past. I don't expect that to happen for a long, long time." Loki offered a sly smile, "But that doesn't mean we can't be entertained in the meanwhile."

"And now what shall you do?" Ikol asked him, hopping lightly from the chair to Loki's bent knee. "He will ever look at you as the little brother he brutalized."

Again, Loki sighed, closing his eyes as he rested back on his pallet. "Oh, Ikol. I am not you and you are no longer me, but still. You of all should know that I always have a plan."

-finis


End file.
